Sanctification: The Calvinist Way?
To one degree or another, I'm ashamed to say, I took...grace for granted. I was "in," and was making a reasonable effort toward my sanctification the Calvinist way. That is, I equated learning more theology, which is a good thing, with growing in grace, which is likewise a good thing. But confusing the two is not such a good thing.
Calvinists, and I am among them, tend to measure their own sanctification on a peculiar scale. You are a simple novitiate when God regenerates you and you trust in the finished work of Christ alone. You become a first-degree believer when you understand the difference between Calvinism and Arminianism. The next step is actually to read a Calvinist or two - Piper, Boice, or Sproul will do.
The next steps up the ladder correspond to the relative difficulty and obscurity of what you are reading. Calvin is better than Piper, but Turretin is better than Calvin. The next plateau has you reading Beza, Bullinger, and Bucer. You become an officer when you can actually quote VanTil. You reach the thirty-third degree when you actually understand that quotation.
- R.C. Sproul, Jr. from the foreword of To You and Your Children
Calvinists, and I am among them, tend to measure their own sanctification on a peculiar scale. You are a simple novitiate when God regenerates you and you trust in the finished work of Christ alone. You become a first-degree believer when you understand the difference between Calvinism and Arminianism. The next step is actually to read a Calvinist or two - Piper, Boice, or Sproul will do.
The next steps up the ladder correspond to the relative difficulty and obscurity of what you are reading. Calvin is better than Piper, but Turretin is better than Calvin. The next plateau has you reading Beza, Bullinger, and Bucer. You become an officer when you can actually quote VanTil. You reach the thirty-third degree when you actually understand that quotation.
- R.C. Sproul, Jr. from the foreword of To You and Your Children
